Executive MBA - Global

The Executive MBA – Global typically runs for a total of 24 months and is broken down into three stages. We provide 21 hours of contact time for each module to give you the hands-on support you need to excel.

Applications are being considered for October 2025.

The Henley MBA offers you a unique personal and professional development experience.

The programme brings together a hand-picked, diverse group of leaders in a unique learning context and environment.

You shouldn’t expect to spend a lot of time in a traditional classroom. Instead, our teaching approach is highly practical, and you will spend a significant amount of time working on real-life projects.

Studying at Henley will allow you to gain a truly global perspective. You will take part in immersive overseas study experiences in locations such as South Africa and the USA. The international cohort of students from the UK and the Nordics also benefit from joint workshops at our Greenlands campus in the UK and in Helsinki.

During these overseas experiences, you will work on challenges for NGOs and charities in emerging markets such as South Africa. You’ll also experience first-hand interaction with innovative start-ups in the USA or fast-growing firms in China.

With a global syllabus and multinational cohorts, this is not your average MBA degree.

For one thing, you can expect significantly more support from your lecturers, with at least 21 hours of contact time during each module. You’re not just another student: we invest in you, just as you invest in us.

• Three year's management experience
• Good degree or equivalent professional or international qualification*
• Evidence of competence in English**
• You must be able to gain access to company data for assignment purposes.
• You may be required to attend, via Skype, in person or telephone, a skills based interview with a senior member of Henley staff focusing on the following behaviours and competencies:
  • Motivation
  • Commercial and business awareness
  • Team working
  • Multitasking and time management
  • Resilience and flexibility
  • Communication

For application support or clarification, please contact our MBA Team.

All applicants must submit:

• Application form
  
• CV (please see example template, please note CV review is available)
• Personal statement
• One professional reference
• Degree transcript and certificate
• Proof of English language ability (if applicable)

Please see the entry requirements and application form notes before submitting your application. We are currently reviewing applications for the next intake. Please contact mba@henley.ac.uk if you would like to be considered for a place.

If you are unable to meet the application deadline, please speak to a member of the recruitment team on mba@henley.ac.uk to discuss your individual circumstances.

*A degree or the equivalent professional or international qualification is normally required; However we do welcome applications from candidates with exceptional management experience who may not meet all the formal criteria for admission. If you have a minimum of 5 year’s experience at a senior or strategic level with no degree, we would be happy to consider an application. Our Admission Panel reviews all non-standard applications for suitability.

**Candidates whose first language is not English will normally be required to meet one of the following conditions:

• Take an IELTS test and achieve an overall score of 7.0 with no less than 6.0 in each element. The University also accepts a number of other tests instead of IELTS. A full list of equivalent tests and scores can be found on here.
• Provide a satisfactorily completed declaration from a current employer (confirmation from a previous employer can be accepted if the applicant left that employer within 12 months of the programme application), confirming that they are required to work in English to a high level on a daily basis.
• Obtain a confirmation of satisfactory level of English language proficiency.

You are required to submit documentary evidence of your performance level with your application. Please indicate on your application form the qualification you have taken and the grade you obtained and attach the appropriate certificate.

Fees for the Executive MBA – Global are £49,500 for October 2025.

Early bird fees are £39,600 if applying before 31 January 2025.

• This includes tuition, assessments and coaching, all lunches and refreshments during Greenlands residential modules, accommodation at Greenlands for all UK in-person workshops, and the majority of overseas study visit costs
• Fees do not include flights or visas for the overseas workshops and study visits, or any individual travel to modules at Greenlands campus, Henley Business School, UK
• Any costs for the additional, optional overseas study visit (elective module) are extra to the programme fee above.

UK-based University of Reading and Henley Business School alumni benefit from a 25% discount on fees for the Executive MBA - Global in 2025. We look forward to welcoming our outstanding alumni back to campus.

Please see below for information on scholarships and bursaries for excellent candidates. For a discussion about your Executive MBA application, funding and support with creating a business case for company sponsorship, contact the Henley team on mba@henley.ac.uk or call +44 (0)118 378 4520.

Tuition will be invoiced to twice a year. For more information, please contact the Henley team on mba@henley.ac.uk or call +44 (0)118 378 4520.

As part of our Global Executive MBA programme, you’ll benefit from invaluable career, leadership and professional development. This includes:

• Leveraging your strengths
• Leading with gravitas
• The art of negotiation
• Managing change and uncertainty
• Team work and intercultural dynamics
• Maintaining and strengthening resilience
• Improvisation and stand-up comedy

We also run additional professional development events to build your network, deepen your knowledge and help you achieve your career goals.

You’ll benefit from access to a qualified, experienced Executive Coach with whom you can discuss all aspects of your professional development.

You’ll also have access to a host of useful online resources, such as:

• VMock – online CV building tool
• Alumni Extra – webinar library covering a range of professional development topics
• PayNegotiation – online training package

The Henley MBA programme is triple-accredited by the AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB.

Finding us

We pride ourselves on understanding the need to create an environment which is both relaxing and comfortable enabling work and study to be focused and effective. From our unique riverside location to our impressive amenities, we provide an ideal environment for meeting success.

How to find us (PDF-1.15 MB)

Sports facilities

Balancing busy work schedules with relaxation and exercise is an important aspect of our approach at Henley. The fully equipped Fitness Centre with views overlooking the beautiful grounds and River Thames has everything needed to restore a sense of well being.

Business facilities

At our Greenlands site we provide a variety of meeting rooms and conference facilities. Our rooms have been designed with an emphasis on practicality with many of our rooms benefiting from the latest presentation equipment to ensure that your meeting runs smoothly.

Conference Rooms

The conference rooms at Greenlands, Henley, all feature air conditioning, natural daylight and excellent acoustics, as well as state-of-the-art AV and presentation technology controlled by bluetooth touch screens, free WiFi access, laptop connections, networked PC and large screens. Our larger rooms also have repeater screens. Each conference room has access to dedicated syndicate and break-out rooms and refreshment areas close by. Stationery, flipcharts, photocopying facilities and whiteboards are included as standard.

Meeting Rooms

All syndicate and meeting rooms at Henley are fitted with a large screen, networked PC, whiteboards and have free WiFi access and laptop connections. River House 1-14 are also fitted with Copycam, allowing users to capture whiteboard notes at the touch of a button. Digital recorders, video and stills cameras are also available on request. All are laid out boardroom style.

Accommodation

We have 100 rooms including some with disabled facilities. All rooms are en-suite & include a safe, trouser press, laptop connection with free Wi-Fi access, direct dial telephone, satellite TV with radio, Molton Brown toiletries, tea & coffee making facilities and a hair dryer. Photograph of Thames Court accommodation.

Full English breakfast is served in our main dining room, which overlooks the River Thames. Our dedicated staff maintain the facility 24 hours a day, seven days a week. All guest rooms receive daily housekeeping services.

Dining

When it comes to dining, we offer you choice, quality and flexibility. We understand that you also want facilities that are conducive to networking, and dining arrangements that integrate seamlessly with the other aspects of your day. Henley is renowned for both its excellent standards of service and the high quality of cuisine. The chefs and their professional staff are able to offer the sophistication of a memorable evening dinner in the spacious dining room, with its views over the lawns down to the Thames.

Fresh, varied breakfasts are prepared by award-winning chefs and served each morning in the beautiful, riverside restaurant - the Heyworth Room.

Refreshments

Several tea and coffee areas are situated throughout the buildings, the Garden Common Room is situated beside the Heyworth Room and is open throughout the day and evening offering a wide range of Fairtrade drinks and a selection of biscuits. The bar is open each evening serving a full range of drinks.

Henley Conference Centre and Hotel

Set in its own 30 acre estate in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside, alongside the River Thames, this magnificent Grade II Listed Building offers excellent conference, meeting and event facilities and provides a spectacular setting for any gathering. For more information about booking our beautiful facilities please visit the Henley Conferences website.

History of Greenlands

Records indicate that there has been a house on our Greenlands site for 500 years, although the house would have originally been much closer to the river.

Greenlands has been home to a series of notable families and individuals throughout its lifetime. These include Thomas Chaucer, son of Geoffrey Chaucer; Robert D'Oyley, Sheriff of Oxfordshire in 1573; Bulstrode Whitelock, Oliver Cromwell's Ambassador to Sweden and most recently WH Smith, who bought the existing house in 1871. Queen Elizabeth I is also known to have visited on more than one occasion, most likely when staying at her royal palace in Reading.

The site became the home of a new Administrative Staff College in 1946, first welcoming students in 1948. In 1952, after the unexpected death of Viscount Hambleden from whom the College leased the site, an opportunity to purchase Greenlands' 30 acres arose. The College was renamed Henley Management College in 1991, and following the 2008 merger with the University of Reading became Henley Business School. Today, the world-ranked Henley MBA, The Henley DBA and our executive education programmes are delivered at Greenlands.